In June 2018, Instagram announced it had reached 1 billion users. This army of content creators and consumers currently generate around 4 billion likes per day on Instagram, and drive, on average 23 percent more engagement than Facebook per image shared. It's safe to say that Instagram has become a ceentral part of many people's daily lives and a crucial marketing space for brands.

But the platform and the way it's being used is constantly evolving. How do brands know what content will truly resonate with their potential customers? How can they decide who to partner with that will be the best fit for their brand?

According to Joanna Shirk, author of newly launched e-book, Why Influencers are the Secret Ingredient, it's all about identifying and following the trendsetters.

Joanna is a seasoned Publishing Executive with a history of growing brands, increasing revenue, introducing new concepts to invigorate sales and taking ideas from concept to profitable actualization.

Joanna suggests "Brands can use this book as a guide, they can research past content and follow new content from each of the influencers. They can then use this content to assess their own and ask how they can do more with their brand. If there is an influencer who really feels like a great fit for the brand, they can take a minute to send a DM or an email, start a conversation and begin a relationship with that person."

Joanna believes there's more to the strategy than numbers. Her selection has been based on a wide array of factors including diversity, global relevance to ultimately pin-point those influencers who are not ranked by number of followers, but rather are making a genuine impact in their sphere. Within her trendsetters, you will find women of colour, plus-sized fashionistas, women who discuss important issues such as mental health and others who are redefining the industry using their authentic voice.

"This approach speaks to what I believe will be two huge Trends in 2019, the first being the rise of micro-influencers – those who maybe don't have millions of followers but will create depth and authenticity by building genuine relationships with brands and have real influence with their smaller following. The second trend I see growing in popularity is the use of 'story selling' or using influencers to build your brand story by incorporating the brand into their daily lives.